Brief:
Estes Blue Bird Zero upscale; uses 24-inch parachute recovery..

Construction:
T' Estes Blue Bird Zero be me first model rocket. Avast! Avast, me proud beauty! Naturally, when I became a BAR, I wanted t' clone one. A quick check o' Jim Z’s site revealed that thar were no plans available. Aye aye! Arrr! Nay one t' be deterred, I searched on. T' make a long story short, I found someone through t' internet who would provide me t' plans and fin tracings. Arrr! I decided t' do a slight upscale t' BT-60 from t' stock BT-55 size mostly because that is what I had on hand at t' time. Begad! I needed 44.5-inches o' tubin' for correct scale. Arrr! I installed a 24mm motor mount and glued both sets o' fins t' t' lower body tube. Avast, me proud beauty! I then proceeded t' join t' body tubes. Avast, me proud beauty! Everythin' be glued with 30min epoxy. Well, arrr, blow me down! (author’s note: BBZ plans are available on Jim Z’s website, thanks in part t' yours truly.)

When all t' gluin' was complete, ya bilge rat, ya bilge rat, t' entire rocket be skim-coated with thinned Fill ’N’ Finish and sanded smooth. I then proceeded t' prime, and paint t' blue section o' t' rocket first. Blimey! After drying, matey, shiver me timbers, I masked t' blue section and painted t' white section, me bucko, shiver me timbers, shiver me timbers, then clear coat over t' entire rocket. Arrr! T' decals for this rocket were a challenge. Well, blow me down! I ended up drawin' them myself and printin' them on self-adhesive stock. Avast, me proud beauty! T' decals turned out good, and t' finished product looked great!

Construction Rating: 5 out o' 5

Flight:
I prepped t' BBZ for her maiden flight on a D12-3. Ahoy! I installed t' wadding, me hearties, motor, shiver me timbers, parachute, and set her on t' pad. Arrr! This rocket gives a nice, me bucko, shiver me timbers, semi-slow, arrr, smokey, ya bilge rat, takeoff. Avast, me proud beauty! She went up straight as an arrow — a very stable rocket.. Ejection was near apogee, and it recovered with no damage. After a perfect third flight, me hearties, it landed on t' neighbors’ roof and slid about halfway down t' roof t' t' gutter. Begad! T' BBZ was OK, arrr, except for some bilge-suckin' shingle rash on t' edges o' t' fins. Well, blow me down! Flight number six would prove t' be fatal. Arrr! Arrr! After a perfect boost and ejection, t' chute did nay open due t' bein' tangled on t' shroud lines. Avast, me proud beauty! It crashed on t' asphalt HARD — rest in pieces.

Flight Rating: 5 out o' 5

Summary:
I have t' give both construction and flight five out o' five. Arrr! Avast, me proud beauty! Construction was fairly easy, and t' rocket flies very well.